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Indian government should listen to Tamil Nadu leaders, Sri Lanka Tamil party leader says

Wednesday, 23 October 2013 - 9:56 AM SL Time

The Central Indian government should listen to the sentiments of Tamil Nadu political leaders over India`s participation in the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Sri Lanka next month, the leader of Sri Lanka`s major Tamil party has said.

Many Tamil Nadu political parties and even Tamil leaders in the Congress have urged the Indian Prime Minister to boycott the Commonwealth meeting in Colombo.

Speaking to the reporters in Chennai, following a meeting with India`s Bharatiya Janatha Party leaders, leader of Tamil National Alliance (TNA) R. Sampanthan has said that he doesn`t think the participation of Indian leaders in the summit would help the Tamil cause despite his party`s divided opinion on the issue.

The newly elected Chief Minister of Northern Provincial Council, C. V. Vigneswaran in an exclusive interview to Times of India has said that the Indian leaders should attend the CHOGM to express their concerns over the Tamil cause and other issue.

`We must have the courage of conviction to tell the Sri Lankan government that it has done this and this and what does it got to say... It is better you say it at the CHOGM rather than keep away,` Times of India quoted the Chief Minister.

However Sampanthan has disagreed with Vigneswaran`s view saying that they might be thinking that the participation of the leaders from India would help the cause of the Tamils but he doesn`t consider that it is the wide opinion.

Sampanthan was in Chennai to hold discussions with the BJP leaders to seek their support on the implementation of 13th Amendment to the Constitution to for power devolution.

`India`s intervention is very much needed for a permanent solution to the Sri Lankan Tamil issue. India should help for resettlement of Tamils,` he has said.

The TNA leader, alleging that the India-sponsored rehabilitation projects had not been properly implemented in Sri Lanka, has requested the leaders of various Tamil parties in the state to work together to help the Sri Lankan Tamils.

He has said that Vigneswaran and other TNA leaders would meet the leaders of various parties, especially those in Tamil Nadu, to get their support.